Car-coupling



G. W. WELLER (No ModeI GAR GOUPLING,

' N6. 446,240. Patented Fwy-10,1891.

jZ QZZ'OW UNITED STATES GILES IVALTING \VELLER, OF BAKER CITY, OREGON.

CAR- COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 446,240, dated February10, 1891.

Application filed July 14, 1890. Serial No. 358,607. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Gums WALTING WEL- LER, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Baker City, in the county of Baker and State ofOregon, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inOar-Couplings; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame.

This invention has reference to an improvement in car-couplers, andparticularly to that class of car-couplers which operate automatically,the invention having for its object to provide a simple, cheap, andefficient device which will automatically couple the cars, thusdispensing with the time and labor of coupling by hand and greatlyobviating the danger incident thereto, saving many lives which wouldotherwise be lost through the employment of the common form of couplernow in general use; and the invention further consists in certainpeculiarities in the construction, arrangement, and combination of theseveral parts, substantially as will be, hereinafter described, and thenparticularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, illustrating my invention, Figure 1 is atop plan view of my improved car-coupler, showing the parts in positionto be coupled. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical section of the same.Fig. 3 is a longitudinal vertical section showing the parts after thecoupling has been effected. Fig. 4 is an inverted plan view of theplunger or pin-support. Fig. 5 is a vertical cross-section of the linkwhich I use with my improved coupler.

Like letters of reference designate corresponding parts throughout allthe different figures of the drawings.

A designates the draw-head or bumper of my improved coupler, which hasthe integral ridge or projection A, on which the link is supported whenthe coupling has been accomplished.

B designates the ordinary draw-bolt, which is secured to the draw-head Ain any desired manner.

Within the recess A. of the draw-head is located what is termed theplunger or pinsupport 0. (Shown in perspective in Fig. i.)

It consists in part of a round rod 0, horizontally situated in therecess A and provided near one end with the screw-threaded opening orperforation c, which is adapted to receive a screw or pin 1), having ahead working in the slot a of the draw-head. The other end of theplunger or pin-support has fiat upper and lower faces d and 61',respectively, its front face being of the doubly-inclined form 6 6 shownin the drawings. Thus it will be seen from Figs. 2, 3, and 4: that thetop face (1 projects beyond the lower face (I, the intervening faces 6 6between the two faces at and d gradually slanting inward, downward, andbackward. Fig. 4 shows the detailed construction of this plunger. Thepurpose of this peculiar construction of the plunger will be hereinafterexplained.-

Between the inner end of the draw-bolt B and the inner end of theplunger Gis located a spiral spring D, which keeps the said plunger O inproper position, as will be hereinafter explained.

The letter E represents the pin whichI use with my coupler, and which isalso of peculiar construction. Its front face and sides are at rightangles to each other, while its rear portion is beveled, as clearly seenin Fig. 1. The lower front end of-the pin is made slanting, as shownatf, Fig. 3. The upper part of the pin is provided with the flange orprojecting edge g, which supports the pin when the cars are coupled, asshown in Fig. 3. This upper part is also provided with a hook or loop71, to which is attachedahandle or other device i, running to the top ofthe car, and which is used for the purpose of uncoupling when desired.The recess in the draw-head is of course shaped to conform to thepeculiar construction of the pin and permit the latter to operate easilywithin the same.

The link F which I use with my improved coupler has the rounded orhalf-oval shaped 95 outside face j and the flat inside face k, (see Fig.5,) while the ends of the link are angular or wedge shapedJ Thisconstruction of the link enables the same to be held in aperfectlyhorizontal position when it is in a coupled state, with theplunger forced against it by means of the spiral spring D,,and thus theadjacent car can be coupled without any difficulty.

The operation of my improved coupler is as follows: Suppose the parts tobe in the posi tion shown in Fig. 2, with the pin E resting upon theupper flat face d of the plunger 0, which plunger is forced outward bymeansof the spiral spring. When a car is to be coupled or when it isdesired to retain the link within the draw-head, said link willbe forcedagainst the doubly-inclined face of the plunger 0, which will compressthe spring D and allow the pin to drop down into position, with itsflange g resting on the top of the partA. It will thus be seen that thelink will be held in a perfectly-horizontal position at all times, asthe outward pressure of the spring forces the plunger against the pinand link, the inside wedge-shaped edge of the link bearing against thebevel face of the pin and preventing the former from falling in aninclined direction, in which position it would not automatically couplewith the next car. hen the pin is withdrawn, the plunger will springforward into its original position.

From the foregoing description of the construction and operation of myimproved carcoupler it will be seen that all the parts are so shaped andarranged as to provide an automatic coupler which will not be liable toget out of order, and one which will obviate the great danger and lossof life incident to the couplers now in general use.

Many of the minor details which I have herein shown and described may bechanged to suit the exigencies of different cases and to correctthedefects which experience may develop, and I' reserve the liberty ofvarying the same without departingfrom the general spirit of theinvention.

The pin 1) prevents the plunger from moving too far forward.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a car-coupler, the combination, with the draw-head, of acoupling-pin having its front face and part of its sides square incross-section, the back face and part of its sides beveled and a flangenear the top for supporting the pin when coupled, a plunger or othersupporting device for supporting the pin, consisting of a rod having atone end a perforation or slot adapted to contain a pin or other devicefor controlling the horizontal movement of the plunger and at the otherend a doubly-inclined supporting face, said plunger being operated bymeans of a coiled spring located between the inner end of the draw-boltand the perforated end of the plunger, together with theconnecting-link, substantially as described.

2. In a car-coupler, the combination, with the draw-head, of thecoupling-pin having its front face and sides at right angles to eachother, the back portion beveled, and a flange near the top forsupporting the pin when coupled, the plunger, and connecting-link,substantially as described.

3. A coupling-link for railway-cars, having a rounded or half-ovalshaped outside face, a flat inside face, and angular or wedge shapedends, substantially as described.

4. A coupling-link for railway-cars, having the rounded outside face j,the flat inside face 70, and the wedge-shaped ends, substantially asdescribed.

5. In a car-coupler, the combination, with the draw-head A, having theintegral upwardly-projecting portion A, for supporting the pin whencoupled, and the slot a, of the plunger located within the draw-head,consisting of the horizontal rod 0, having at one end the perforation orslot 0, adapted to contain a pin 1), working in the slot (1, and at theother end the (loubly inclined supporting portion having flat upper face(1' and fiat lower face (Z and inclined faces 6 e, and a spiral springD, located between the inner ends of the draw-bolt and plunger, togetherwith the coupling-pin and connecting-link, all substantially as shownand described.

6. In a car-coupler, the combination, with the draw-head, of the pin E,having its front face and sides at right angles to each other and theback face beveled, as shown, the supporting-flange 9, loop or ring it,to which a handle or other suitable device, as i, may be connected, andthe cut-away portion 1), together with the pin-supporting plunger,spiral spring, and connecting-link, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I affiX my signature in presence of two witnesses.I

GILES WVALTING XVELLER.

\Vitnesses:

GEORGIA SMITH, WILLIAM SMITH.

